pacing calendars and students contracts

1. PACING CALENDARS AND
STUDENT CONTRACTS
Teresa Pinkston
TulsaTechnologyCenter

2. STUDENT CONTRACTS

3. Student Contracts are agreements between a
teacher (or teaching team) and a student (or
occasionally a group of students). These
agreements allow students to make choices about
completing tasks and to meet certain specifications.
WHAT ARETHEY?

4. WHAT ISTHE PURPOSE?
 Enrich or extend the essential curriculum
 Challenge the abilities of all students
 Provide alternative activities that address the differing abilities,
interests, or learning styles of students
 Help students learn to make decisions about their learning
 Help students learn to manage their time
 May involve the student in curriculum planning
 Can be used to support all learners

5. WHAT ARETHE ADVANTAGES?
 Can be written for any curriculum area
 Provide rigorous and challenging learning activities
 Can be used to target specific learning activities for individuals or groups
 Promote flexible grouping in the classroom
 Accommodate students' needs by blending skill-based and content-based learning
 Promote creative and critical thinking for students
 Develop students' time-management, planning, and decision-making skills
 Allow students to work at an appropriate pace
 Recognize students' prior knowledge
 Eliminate boredom by minimizing repetition for students
 Increase students' independence, motivation and class participation

6. WHAT ARETHE COMPONENTS?
1. Outcome(s) -specify what is to be accomplished, the conditions under which
learning will be demonstrated, and the level of proficiency required to meet the
outcome.
2. Resources- including print, media, and human
3. Learning Alternatives- include reading, writing, viewing, creating, interviewing,
and other activities the student experiences to accomplish the outcome.
4. Reporting Alternatives and Assessment- should provide evidence as to whether
the outcomes have been met
Accomplished and include a self-assessment. Conferences, tests, projects,
presentations, real world products, portfolios of work are examples of reporting
alternatives.

7. OPTIONS FOR ASSESSING AND EVALUATING
STUDENT WORK ON CONTRACTS
 Select specific tasks to be evaluated it is not necessary to evaluate every
task.
 Provide a combination of teacher-selected tasks and student-selected
tasks;
 Use rubrics created by the teacher or the student that incorporate
neatness, thoughtfulness, accuracy of information, originality (if
appropriate)

8. “THINK ABOUTS” FOR CREATING
CONTRACTS
 Essential curriculum objectives upon which the learning contract will be
based
 Ways to incorporate student choice in the portions of the contract related to
process or product
 Clear and challenging criteria for success (time lines, quality of work, etc.)
 Skills and content based on student readiness as well as interest and/or
learning profile
 Criteria to be used in assessing and evaluating student work
 Expectations of positive work behaviors
 Clear directions and expectations

9. MANAGEMENTTIPS FOR CONTRACTS
 Notify parents (if applicable) of learning contract implementation and
expectations
 Require parent, student, and teacher signature on contract (if applicable)
 Set dates to meet with individual(s) or group(s) of students to monitor
and discuss progress
 Allow time to accommodate student questions and/or concerns

10. DO’S AND DON’TS
 Explain the role & function of
contracts
 start small (1or 2 day) contracts
 negotiate contracts with students
whenever possible
 help set realistic deadlines
 renegotiate the contract if it isn't
working
 solicit student feedback on
process
 Gradually involve students in
contract development
 expect all students to use
contracts effectively at the
beginning
 expect all students to like
contracts.
 assume contracts can take the
place of regular instruction
 use contracts without a good
management system
DO’s DON’TS

11. PACING CALENDARS

12. WHAT IS IT?
a planning tool that helps teachers plan the pacing of
their instruction
A pacing guide is sometimes referred to as a
curriculum map, scope and sequence, standards
schedule, instructional calendar, or road map.

13. WHY HAVE IT? (REASONS)
 Improve student performance and reduce gaps in student achievement
 Avoid gaps and unintended repetition in learning when students transfer from
other schools
 Render results that inform decisions made concerning (e.g, changes needed in)
instructional strategies, programs, curriculum etc.
 Information collaboration between educators

14. “THINK ABOUTS” FOR PACING CALENDARS
 The effects depend on the design and how they are used.
 The best pacing calendars emphasize curriculum guidance instead of prescriptive pacing;
these calendars focus on central ideas and provide links to exemplary curriculum
materials, lessons, and instructional strategies.
 Calendars like these embody what many experienced teachers do when they plan their
curriculum for the year:They chunk it, put topics in a sensible order, determine what
resources to draw on, and develop a good sense of how long different elements will take.
 They also allow for some unpredictability depending on their particular mix of students.
 Constructive pacing Calendars assume differences in teachers, students, and school
contexts.
 They adjust expectations through frequent revisions based on input from teachers. Most
important, they encourage instruction that challenges students.

15. WHAT RESOURCES ARE NEEDEDTO
DEVELOP A PACING CALENDAR?
 School Calendar
 Curriculum
 CTSO Calendar
 Guest speaker list (utilize your advisory committee)
 Community Calendar
 1st week of school checklist (verify all forms necessary )
 Course syllabi
 Plan of study/grade sheet/list of courses (course hours should be identified)
 Field trips
These are suggestions and is not a complete list.

16. GAME TIME

17. RED AND GREEN
True and False
Agree and Disagree
 Red and Green cards
 Each student displays his/her selected side over his/her heart or chin, wherever it is most
visible to the teacher.
 Instruct students to hold it close to their body so it is difficult for others to view their
choice.

18. AGREE OR DISAGREE!
Hold your card up close to your chin as soon as you decide if you
Agree or Disagree!
Topic: Student Contracts and
Pacing Calendars
AgreeDisagree

19. TRUE OR FALSE?
One advantage of student contracts is it can
be used to target specific learning activities
for individuals or groups

20. TRUE!
Way to go!!!!!

21. AGREE OR DISAGREE?
Student Contracts
are developed by the teacher
and the student has no input

22. DISAGREE!
Student Contracts are agreements between a teacher (or teaching
team) and a student (or occasionally a group of students). These
agreements allow students to make choices about completing tasks and
to meet certain specifications.

23. TRUE OR FALSE?
DO expect all students to
use contracts effectively at
the beginning

24. FALSE!
This is a Don’t
Don’t expect all students to use
contracts effectively at the
beginning

25. AGREE OR DISAGREE?
A pacing calendar is a planning tool that helps
teachers plan the pacing of their instruction?

26. AGREE!

27. TRUE OR FALSE?
Calendars like these embody what many experienced
teachers do when they plan their curriculum for the year:They
chunk it, put topics in a sensible order, determine what
resources to draw on, and develop a good sense of how long
different elements will take.

28. TRUE!!!

29. GREAT JOB EVERYONE!!!
You have just been assessed

30. LET’S GET STARTED

31. INTERESTING WEBSITES
Instructional Pacing: How Do Your Lessons
Flow?
http://www.edutopia.org/blog/instructional-pacing-tips-rebecca-alber
A Step-by-Step Guide to the Best Projects
http://www.edutopia.org/stw-project-based-learning-best-practices-guide